Gather round friends and neighbors while I delight you with the story of Major Malletâ€™s Ever Popular Fickle Finger of Fate!

The Fickle Finger is a game where contestants get to spin a wheel for a chance to win a sno kone! However, if they land on a space other than a free kone (and 15 out of 16 times they will), then they must perform some silly task with other people randomly chosen from the throngs of excited onlookers. Sno kones, group participation and random mixing in the same project! Lovely!

Sample games include:

Lust in the Dust: Contestant gets a member of the opposite sex to join them in a dramatic reading from Shakespeare, the final scene from Casablanca, etc .

(Smells Like) Teen Spirit : Contestant picks three other people and they must write and perform a cheer to get the crowd riled up.

The Taunter : Contestant picks one person from the crowd and does the taunting skit from Monty Python's Holy Grail (complete with an outrageous French accent). Can also do other Monty Python skits (dead parrot, ministry of silly walks, etc.)

Frank Zappa inspired idiocy like: Bobby Brown â€“ Contestant must mime Frank Zappa Bobby Brown song lyrics with 3 other contestants. Penguin in Bondage â€“ must throw a stuffed penguin through a hoop formed by the clasped hands of two other people. Contestant keeps taking steps back until he/she misses. Total number of correct throws = total number of kones won.

You get the idea.

Here are some pictures of the almost finished Fickle Finger of Fate:

The large white board on top of the post will be a hand painted sign reading: "Major Mallet's Ever Popular Fickle Finger of Fate". There is a little lettering work to be done on the wheel.

The finger will be making regular appearances at Kamp APOKILIPTIKA â€“ times to be posted once we get our camp calendar settled.

PM me if you are interested in joining me in shaving sno kones and producing a little extra silliness on the playa.

The finger is, in the slang used by US airmen during the second world war, the "Rigid Digit" (aka - the middle finger). The large sign at the top of the wheel will read "Major Mallet's (IN CAPS) ever popular (in script) and then a graphic that looks like this:

It was the nose art of an actual B-17 from the 385 Bombardment Group, 8th Air Force. Only later did I find out that the Flying Finger of Fate was a skit on the 1960's show Laugh In.